Machine for trimming and cleaning brushes.



H. J. LEBHERZ. MACHINE FOR TRIMMING AND CLEANING BRUSHES.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 12, 1907.

9m 1 r Fl U .T 5 7 1 3 V. 63 N 9 u a aw P I ,vh lw I V ll m. 5 f S, PAD/s E mu W EL mm M WITNESSES:

APPLICATION FILED JULY 12, 1907.

m A N [NYE/ TOR TTORNEY WITNESSE? H. J. LEBHERZ. MACHINE EOE TRIMMINGAND CLEANING BRUSHES.

APPLICATION PlLED JULY 12, 1907.

Patented Feb. 23, 1909.

4 SBEETS-SHBIIT 3.

mvsu ragwi/ @i/em A TTORNE).

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY,J; LEBHERZ, or FREDERICK, MARYLAND, Ass eNoR, BY IEs EASSIGNMENTS, TO

" I y THEOX FIBRE BRUSH COMPANY, -A CORPORATIQN or WEST VIRGINIA.

- MACHINE FOR TRIMMING AND CLEANING BRUSHES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 23,,1509.

. To all whom it may concern:-

Be it known that I, HARRY J. LEBHERZ, a c1t1zen of the United States,residing at Freder1ck,'1n.the county of Frederick and ,Stateof Maryland,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines forTrimming and Cleanin Brushes, of

which the following is a specihcation.

This invention has for its object to rovide a machlne for economicallyand e ciently cleanmgt and trimming brush-bristles after the have beeninserted in the usual backs.

a the trackway, together with various eatures of construction andoperation whereby practical advantages are gained, as will be ereinafterfully described.

The scope of the invention will appear from the appended claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine illustrativeof the preferred form of embodiment of my invention. Fig. 1 is asectional detail of a locking device for the hand lever by means ofwhich the bearing blocks for the primary cleaner are; adjusted, as, onthe line 11 of Fig. 1. Fi .2 is a lan of the machine. 'Fig. 3 is alongituc inal verticaljsection thereof, as on the line 33 of Fig. 2,showing the machine as in actualoperation. Fig. 4 is a partialtransverse horizontal section, as on the line 4 :4 of

Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a front end elevation 'of the machine. Fig. 6 is a.transverse vertical section, 'as on the line 55 of-Fig. 1.

inc 66 of is a similar section, as on the Fig. 1 l

10 is an appropriate supporting frame, comprising standards 11 amparallel sid members 12. l

14 'is'an endless conveyer extending longi-- tudinally of the mainframe, within the 'space between theside members, and comprising. pairof parallel chains 15 connected at'regular intervals by transverse bars16. Thesechaihs pass around sprocket wheels 17 carried by transverseshafts 18 'attheres ectiveends of the'frame, the rearward s aft the siderails.

being geared with and driven from a wheel 19 on a shaft 13 hereinafterreferred to, by means of a sprocket chain 20. The upper run of theconveyor travels in a horizontal path, while the lower run is deflecteddownwardly, suflicientlyto clear the oplerating mechanism, by means ofsprocket w eels 21 carried by a transverse shaft 22 suitably v journaled in bearings in the main frame.

Extending longitudinall of the frame, and directlybelow the pat oftravel of the transverse bars on the horizontal run of the conveyer, areone or more tracks com risin parallel rails upon which the side e 'es othe brush backs are supported. The backs thus extend into the ath of thebarsand are engaged and impe ed thereby along the track or tracks. 7

In the present illustration of my invention rovision is had for impellintwo rows of rushes, and hence two ara lel trackways are provided.These'tra ways comprise a central rail 23 and two side rails 24, thesame being supported by. brackets 25, 26, rising from cross-bars 27, 27,respectively, secured in and between the side members of "the mainframe.

The brackets 25 for the central rail are fixedly secured to the bars 27while those for. the side rails are movable longitudinally of the bars27, to theend that the side rails may be adjusted toward or from thecentral rail in order to vary the width of the intervening spaces forthe accommodation of; brushes of 'difierent widths. Any suitablemechanism may be employed for adjusting Inthe present instance theirbrackets 26 are extended below the bars 27, and the extensions providedwith appropri 'g ately threaded orifices to which are fitted iencorresponding screw shafts 29 which ar'ez journal'ed at a suitabledistance apart in; the walls of the main frame. 29 has a righthand andlefthand screw: thread, so that when the shaftis properly, turned thebrackets 26 be moved h pppositejdirections to each other in manner, toadjust the side rails either towar orfronr the central rail, as desired.In orderto turn. both shafts 29 concurrently, and thus insure thearallel adjustment of the side rails ,th e sha ts are extended beyondtherespective sides of the main frame.

' The projecting ends on one side are Each of the shafts;

vided with correspondingsprocket wheels 30,,

Which are connectedby a sprocketchain 31, "and the pro ecting ends onthe other side are equippedwith hand wheels 32. Hence b turning eitherof the hand wheels, the simu'f taneous actuation of the shafts, andcorrespondin adjustment of the two tracks, can be read' y accomplished.

Arranged at intervals in the main frame,

{are the clearing and trimming mechanism :-'A, B, respectively, to theactions ofwhich ithe bristles of. the brushes are successivelyonstitutes a' means of wine e su'bjected as they are .carried along bythe conveyer. The cleaners and trimmers are herein represented asduplicated, but it is to be understood that in some cases a singlecleaner: and a single trimmer will suffice. The primary cleanerpreferably comprises a rotating roller or drum- 33, provided with rowsof axially projecting pins or studs 34,

which constitute beaters. The roller is carried by'a shaft 35 whichisjournaled in.ver-.

tically-adjustable bearing-blocks 36 slidingly fitted to guides in thesides of the main frame,

whereby the roller may be adjusted toward or from the trackways, as thelength of the depending bristles may require. As a simple and efiicientmeansto' effect the adj'u'stment of the blocks 36,.they arerespecelyconnected by links 137' with two arms S eX'te nding from a transverserock-shaft 9 in the mainframe. One of .thefsaid arms Ipart of a handlever 40 "by the rock-shaft may be readily rotated. This lever isconveniently provided with a suitable spring-actuated stud 41 (Fig. 1*)which may be engaged with a perforated locking sector-42 on the side ofthe main frame in order to retain the blocks in the pre-determinedjustment. v I

One end of the shaft 35 of the second cleaner isprovi'ded with a pulley96, aroundwhich extends a belt 97, leading from a suitable drivingpulley on a driving shaft not shown. ,Thus the roller 33 is driven at ahigh rate-"ofspeed to cause its radially-pro jecting studs to penetratethe dependiazg tufts, and comb and beat therefronflo e bristles, dirtandother foreign matter. The other end of the shaft 35 of the primarcleaner is conveniently'driven from t e sha t 3501 the second cleaner,by means of a belt 67 passing aroundpulleg s -68, of the respectivecleaners.

The sha I v cleaner is provided with a pulley 43 which is connectedby-means of a belt 44 with a,

' larger pulley 45'upon a shaft 46, adjacent the shaft 13; the shaft 13beingpactuated from the shaft 46, by a pinion 4 7 0 n the shaft 46, ingear aspurwheel48 on the -shaft 13.

Inr'ear of the primary'lcleaneristhe primary trimmer B which, initspreferred form, comprises a-rotatable cutterhead 51 provided on itsperiphery gwith detachable cutter position of vertical ad-' t '35 of theprima'ry' blafile52 constructed and arranged'to co-act with a relativelyfixedcutter blade 53 in the path of the depending bristles. 51 iscarried by a shaft 54 journaled in bearings in a frame 55 verticallyadjustable on a bracket 62 extending between the side members of themain frame. The shaft is pro- This head vided at its ends withpulleys.56 which are connected by belts 57 with suitable driving pulleyson a power shaft not shown. The lade 53 is mounted on the frame 55 inclose relationto the path of the blades 52 bymeans of'a set-screw 59,whereby the blade 53 may On the lower end of the screw-shaft 61 1srotatedin a manner-to" raise or lower the frame 55 and its appurtenances, and thereby adjust the cutterin respect to the dependingbristles.

When the brushes leave the first trimmer they pass to the second cleanerA, and thence to the second trimmerB. The second cleaner and trimmer areidentical in' construction and operation with the rimary cleaner and Thesecond 0 eaner removes from trimmer. the depending bristles any short orloose bristles that may remain thereomand the second cleaner insures thetrimming of irregular depending bristles that may then remaln in thebrushes. I

In order to maintain the brushes firmly and uniformly upon thetrackways, as the brushes are being carried along and being subjected tothe operations of the cleaning and trimming devices, I arrangeimmediately above the main frame a rectangular topplate 69. which issupported at or near its four corners by screw-shafts 70 rising from theside members f the frame. These shafts are fitted to tappe lugs in thetop-plate, and are provided with sprocket-wheels 71 around which passesan endless chain 72. One of the screw shafts is provided with a handwheel 73, by the rotation'of which the four shafts may be simultaneouslyactuated uni formly to raise or lower the top late as dcsired, inv orderto accommodate rush-backs of varying thickness. The top-plate is; preferably provided with transverse pressure rollers 74 which are arrangedto bear upon the brushes and hold them uniformly in engagement with thetrimmers. 1 The shafts of these rollers are journaled in brackets 75 onthe top-plate. The brackets are each pivoted at one end to lugs 76 onthe plate, and

' held depressed at the' other. end by means of suitably disposedsprings 77,so that the'rollers exert a 'yieldingpressure upon the brushbacks as thelatter pass thereunder.

3 To facilitate the feeding of the brushes t the machine, I. preferablythough not'essentially, provide a suitable supply hopper therefor. Thishopper is aflixed to the for ward end of the top plate so as to partakeof the "vertical adjustments thereof. .It includes a base piece 78; atransversely extending end .wall 79 thereon, and a central forwardlyextending partition 80 on the said -wall, these parts being preferablyintegral,

' adjusted toward and from the wall to var the internal len' th of thehopper, as desire On the inner si es of the respective end walls ,aresecured vertical plates 84 having inwardly-turned edge flanges 85 which,in conjunction with the opposing sides of the partition, constitute guiof the brush back; ,These plates 84 are .slotes for the lateral edgested, and secured to the res ective end walls by screw bolts 86, so as toe adjustable toward and from the partition to accommodate brushes ofdifferent widths. The hopper as thus constructed is adapted to recelvetwo piles of superposed brushes and deliver them 1n, airs 'to theunderlying conveyer.

t is to be noted that the brush supporting and guiding rails commence ator be ond the inner end wall of the hop er,as, o viously,

if they extended beneat the hopper the laterally flaring bristles of thebrushes would upon rocks interfere with the proper seating of thebrushbacks upon the track rails. In order, therefore, to support thelowermost pairof brushes in the path of the conveyerand in position tobe carried thereby on to the trackways, a horizontal table 87 isarranged beneath the hopper and below the upper run of the conveyer. AThis table is adjustable vertically to accommodate brushes havingbristles of different lengths, and to this end it is supported arallelarms 88 rising from transverse hafts 89v journaled in the side membershe main frame. These shafts are provided epending arms 90 connected by alink ne of the shafts 89 carries on its outer toe 92 which rests upon avertical d-screw 93 journal'ed in the adjacent member of the main frame,and the other shaft is furnished with a pointer 94 which I moves about agraduated index 95 on the frame. By properly turning the hand-screw thetoe is adjusted'vertica'lly to regulate to a nicety thehorizontal planeof the table with respect to the trackwa andthe pointer and indexaccordingly in icatethe position of adjustment 1. In a machine of thecharacterdescrib ed trackways uponwhich brushes are supported and guidedin respect to said device,

said trackways comprising two. outer rails and at central rail, meansforsimultaneously adjusting the outer rails toward or from the centralrail, and means for conveying brushes along said trackways.

i 2. In a machine of the character described, the combination of abristle-treating device, trackways upon which brushes are supported andguided in respect to said device,

trimmer, a trackway upon which brushes are supported and guided acrossthe paths-of sat cleaner and trimmer, respective ,abed

overhanging the trackwa and constituting a back support and gui e forthe brushes,

means 'for radjusting the bed toward and from the trackway, and meansfor conveying brushes along said trackway.

4. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a bristlecleaner, a bristle trimmer, a trackway u 3011 which brushes aresupported and guide across the aths of sai cleaner and trimmer,respective y, a bed overhanging the trackway and constituting a backsupport and guide, for the brushes, pressure rollers mounted in said beddirectly above the trimmer, means for ad'usting the bed toward and fromthe trackway, and means for conveying brushes along said trackway.

5. In a machine of the character described, the combination with asource of supply of brushes, of a brush conveyer, a trackway to andalongwhich the brushes are advanced source of supp p 6. In a maclune ofthe character described, the combination with a source of supply ofbrushes, of a brush conveyer, a trackway to and along which the brushesare ladvanced by the conveyer, a table below the source of supply, andmeans -for vertically adjusting the table.

7 In a machine of the character described, the combination with a sourceof supply of brushes, a brush conveyer, a trackway to' and along whichthe brushes are advanced by the conveyer of a supporting table below thesaid source of supply, rock-shafts, arms thereon carrying sai table, dcending arms on said shafts, a link connecting the latter.

65 the combination of a bristle tveatlng.device, the combination with atrackway, of means for moving brushes along the same, .a top plateoverhanging the trackway, a brush supply hoppersupported by said plate,and means for vertica y adjusting the plate and hopper.

9. A brush supply hop er comprising an end wall member, a centrapartition extending therefrom, sectional end wall members on saidpartition, adjustableconnections between said members an side plates onthe inner sides of the respecpartition, vertical tive Wall members, andadjustable connec tions between said plates andwall members.

In testimony whereof, I, have signed my name to this specification inthe presence of 15 two subscribing witnesses, this 6th day of. July,1907-.

HARRY J. EBHERZ,

HARRY C. HULL.

